1. Arsenic exposure during pregnancy and postpartum maternal glucose tolerance: evidence from Bangladesh.
- Author
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Fleisch AF, Mukherjee SK, Biswas SK, Obrycki JF, Ekramullah SM, Arman DM, Islam J, Christiani DC, and Mazumdar M
- Subjects
- Bangladesh epidemiology, Blood Glucose, Female, Glucose, Humans, Postpartum Period, Pregnancy, Arsenic analysis, Diabetes, Gestational chemically induced, Diabetes, Gestational epidemiology
- Abstract
Background: Arsenic exposure has been associated with gestational diabetes mellitus. However, the extent to which arsenic exposure during pregnancy is associated with postpartum glucose intolerance is unknown., Methods: We studied 323 women in Bangladesh. We assessed arsenic exposure in early pregnancy via toenail and water samples. We measured fasting glucose and insulin in serum at a mean (SD) of 4.0 (3.5) weeks post-delivery. We ran covariate-adjusted, linear regression models to examine associations of arsenic concentrations with HOMA-IR, a marker of insulin resistance, and HOMA-β, a marker of beta cell function., Results: Median (IQR) arsenic concentration was 0.45 (0.67) μg/g in toenails and 2.0 (6.5) μg/L in drinking water. Arsenic concentrations during pregnancy were not associated with insulin resistance or beta cell function postpartum. HOMA-IR was 0.07% (- 3.13, 3.37) higher and HOMA-β was 0.96% (- 3.83, 1.99) lower per IQR increment in toenail arsenic, but effect estimates were small and confidence intervals crossed the null., Conclusions: Although arsenic exposure during pregnancy has been consistently associated with gestational diabetes mellitus, we found no clear evidence for an adverse effect on postpartum insulin resistance or beta cell function., (© 2021. The Author(s).)
- Published
- 2022
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